I started from not applying any makeup to spending half an hour every morning to apply one using numerous products.

It was made easy by the convenience of stick foundations. They are compact, easy to buff, and they offer enough coverage to make your skin look like it got enough sleep. I’ve stuck with one stick foundation the past year and now it’s time to try out a new one.

The Firm Flesh foundation sticks ($18) from Flesh Beauty promises medium coverage with a dewy, never ashy, finish in a creamy formula. The first time I tried this as a foundation, I found the actual stick to hard to buff out my face so I need to warm the stick with my hands before application. It feels creamy on the face, though, and offers medium to full coverage. The shades I have are shades 4, 5, and 6. I use 6 as a foundation and shades 4 and 5 to conceal and highlight.

It doesn’t look ashy on my skin, which is nice and I can set this with a mist for every day or with powder if I want a more matte finish. My best use for this one is when I don’t want to apply too much makeup and just conceal some imperfections and the dark circles under my eyes. I apply it with my fingers and be out in about 15mins. It doesn’t move or budge for about 6 hours though it tends to gather on the lines under my eyes after a while. Since it’s compact, this would be good for quick touch-up using your fingers.

I once never really got on the highlighter craze but I still love me some glow from within look. It’s difficult for my oily skin as just “one more swipe” can go from “you are glowing” to “you look greasy” but thankfully, Flesh Beauty has a lot of options for me to play with.

Touch Flesh ($18), their highlighting balm, provides the most subtle sheen, which I really like for every day. I have the shades Startle, which applies silver, and Twitch, a dark bronze.

This cream highlighter provides glow from afar and up close. It doesn’t leave flecks of shimmer and is easily blendable. It also feels softer and easier to control compared to other highlighting balms I’ve tried. I can use my fingers or a dense brush to blend this out and I would get the same dewy sheen. I also like that it’s small enough to put in a clutch for those times you need to add extra shine. It also likes applying the bronze one all over my lids for a slight dewy eye look.

This is a first for me but I fell in love with Ripe Flesh ($28) on first use. This is my first liquid highlighter and the shade Candleglow is bronzy and honestly looks too dark at first but it melts like a dream. It compliments my skin perfectly and gives off a natural, healthy glow. It’s runny so it’s easy to blend and but not too runny that it becomes streaky. I can apply it with my fingers but I like applying this best with a dense contour brush. It lasts all night and it doesn’t move my makeup or make me look overly oily. I don’t mix this with my foundation and instead, add this on after because I have oily skin but this literally gives off that lit from within glow without that much effort.

Their powder highlighter is called Flesh to Flesh ($28), which is, compared to the other powder highlighters I’ve tried, compared to others, this has more visible flecks and offers a more pronounced highlight to the skin. I have the shades Jump, a champagne gold, and Boost, a gold shimmering highlighter.

This feels soft to the skin, almost creamy, and applies evenly on the skin. Used alone, one swipe can provide a more noticeable highlight compared to the balm and the glisten drops. It can also be built up from a sophisticated highlight on your cheekbones to a highlight that can be seen a few feet away with a few swipes. As a matter of preference, I still prefer cream and liquid highlighters over powder ones as they just apply too obvious for me, which isn’t what I usually go for.

They only have a few lip products in their arsenal but it covers both ends of the spectrum. There’s something for those who only go for subtle, something for the bold, or somethings who go both ways.

A sheer lipstick, Fleshy Lips ($18) has 10 shades, aiming to provide nudes that will compliment every skin tone in a creamy lightweight texture using rosehip, lavender, and white tea extracts. I have Moist, pinkish coral, and Pucker, a grape jam color. It’s in lipstick form but applies like a lip tint. It doesn’t apply shiny but it feels a bit balmy on the lips, making my lips feel moisturized. I like that the color lasts for more than four hours. It’s not drying and Moist, just make my lips look glossy without the stickiness and bright without totally contrasting with my skin.

This cruelty-free and paraben-free sheer lipsticks contain rosehip, lavender and white-tea extracts for a moisturizing, lightweight texture with a bit of a grip. This is my go-to everyday #lipcolor as its subtle but offers a bit of effortless color to the lips plus a but of understated sheen.

The shades Chew is a sheer raspberry pink, Gorge has sheer warm brown tone, Lick is a sheer peachy pink color, while Yum looks like a soft terracotta.

Strong Flesh ($18) is a satin-textured lipstick that promises strong pigmentation. As promised, this stays true to its color when applied. Aside from the incredible pigmentation, I like the magnetic closure because my disorganization can’t handle another open and broken lipstick that create abstract art inside my purse. Siren, a deep plum, and Queen, a deep berry, applies matte to me and can be applied with a swipe for more coverage or by tapping the bullet on the lips to slowly build on the color. Queen looks like cabernet and Siren is a deep violet for the brave. I like using Queen if I want a bit of drama to my morning makeup without scaring my barely awake coworkers.

As a lover of long-lasting, retouch proof makeup products, their matte liquid lip, Proud Flesh ($20), is the first thing I tried out of the bunch. I have the spicy rose Bluff and deep violet Bruise, both promising a matte and weightless finish. Honestly, it’s been a while since I used a liquid lipstick but I was excited to do so. It takes practice to precisely apply this but the thin and flexible applicator helped. Especially because it’s super pigmented, like one swipe colors my entire lower lip, and the shades I have applied the same as the color in the tube. It dries really matte and settles on the lines on my lips, though, so it’s more comfortable for me if I apply a balm beforehand. I know a lot of people do that but keep in mind, my lips need not be thoroughly moisturized before so applying a balm on my lip before anything is quite an adjustment for me. I love how long this lasts, though. Bluff fades after eating but leaves a nice mauve colored tint so you don’t look completely colorless.

On to my favorite of the bunch. Swipe Flesh ($24) is a lip compact, which is something I have never had before. It’s basically a compact for lip color, a really new concept for me that I love trying. The concept of this lip compact promising to provide easy and effortless color to the lips is something I am really in line with.

Upon the first dip, the formula felt creamy but once it’s applied, it dries velvet matte and feels really thin. I apply this with my fingers, which is perfect for that blurred lip look. It also doesn’t feel uncomfortable on the lips and even after a few hours. It doesn’t feel like your lips are being sucked dry, which I have experienced with other lip products with a matte finish.

Swollen Lips, a warm berry, looks a bit orange on the pan but applies a bit browner on me and appears to be about 2 shades darker than my natural lip color. Jiggly, a dusty rose, is not my lips but better nude for my skin tone. It’s lighter than my natural lip color but it perfectly suits my skin. It’s great if I’m wearing really dark eye makeup and I want the rest of my face to look light and even. Puffy, a pink rose, is closer to my lip color so I use this almost every day if I want a natural looking lip to go with my no makeup-makeup look.

Housed in typical modern and compact packaging, these makeup products are easy to carry along as they are compact and they don’t take up to much space in your purse.

A first for me, the Flipbook ($22) and makeup sheets that have bronzer, blush, and highlighter pages are meant to be torn off and rubbed on the face or body. It has matte pale pink, bright glimmery rose, and golden bronze for all coloring needs. This is such a novelty for me since I’m so used to wiping my face to remove something, not add. The papers are very pigmented and are so easy to use. This flipbook saves so much space in my purse and it makes it so easy to touch-up in the middle of the day or at night, depending on your social life. I sometimes use the paper as an applicator but most of the time, I use my fingers for more precision. The contour has a few shimmers in it so I need to be careful but it’s a red based bronze so it suits my warm skin tone. I also like using this on my eyes.

Tender Flesh ($26) are soft-focus blushes with eight shades into two finishes (matte and glimmer) to suit all skin colors. These blushes are really pigmented so careful application is need as the colors tend to stay in place almost right after application. Plus side is it lasts so long, even on my oily skin, about eight hours, so I like putting this on if I know I’m going to an event or a long meeting. This is one of the longest wearing blushes I have ever used that carried on almost the same amount of color throughout the day. I have the colors Caress ( a matte amber that gives that sunkissed look), Fever (a matte hot coral that can add so much color in just one light swipe, making it a great color at night), and Glaze (a shimmering brick that works best for me when I’m going outdoors for that glowy flushed look.)

For the eyes, the eye shadow palette Fleshcolor ($38) contains seven neutral color and gold and bright pink for a splash of color. This is a great choice for those who want a simple neutral look that’s not boring as there are offerings for a splash of color.

The mattes are pigmented but need to be blended longer for it not to appear streaky. The metallics are best applied with your fingers as I don’t get enough shine even if I wet my brush. This, I have found common in most palettes. Sometimes fingers work best.

I mean, there is really no question. The Fleshpot ($20) eye and cheek gloss really is glossy.

I have the shade Disco Nap, a peach gloss flecked with pink and gold pigments. This gloss promises to give eyelids, cheeks, and lips a glimmery sheen when worn alone or over makeup. This cruelty-free gloss is also oil-free and is made with fragrance and parabens.

I like putting it on my eyes or on the high point of my cheeks to amplify the dewy look. I also like using this as a topper on my lips for that high gloss shine. Using this as face gloss, though, I really have to be strategic because hair tends sticks to it.

When applied on my eyes without a shadow primer, it gathers at the fold of my lids. I mean this tub is a concept for me. I don’t like using it every day because that’s not what my work entails but I use it for special occasions. What I can really give this props for is how good it looks on photos and videos. Over a semi-matte foundation, this makes my face look dewy, my lips shiny, and my eyes look twinkly.

These products were provided by @fleshbeauty and @foundation. Available ulta.com

Get ready for some cuteness because Paul & Joe Beaute gifted me their New Year Kit. With the philosophy of fun-loving sophistication, the brand’s beauty products promise charming packaging, luxurious textures, and rich colors.

Of course, the packaging is cute and luxe. It was the reason why I wanted to try this. I like that the packaging is not just cute, they are also of high-quality and are just so nice to look at.

This has a serum-like texture. The Shade 01 has a tint and if it’s lighter than your skin color, it will give a white cast. I got a bit but what it did was even the tone of my skin. Those who have lighter complexions can use this alone as it offers enough coverage for a casual and light weekend look. It leaves a tacky finish on my skin but I think those with dry skin will love its moisturizing benefits. I thought for sure this would look messy on my skin but I like how even my skin looks whenever I use this. Paired with an oil-control mist, this leaves my skin dewy-looking. I’m just surprised by this because even if I have to add more mattifying products to make this work, it looks so good on me. It makes my skin look even, bright, and glowy.

Stick Highlighter in 001

The Stick Highlighter ($30) is a cat-shaped highlighter formulated with silver, gold, and orange pearl extracts to create a natural-looking glow. I like that it looks like a lipstick and the tip is shaped like a cat because it provides precision highlighting. Subtle glow, it isn’t though. The shade 001 has a silver undertone on my skin and gives off a dewy sheen. Because of the tube packaging, it’s easy to control how much you would want. And control you need because even though it’s creamy, it sets easily. When highlighting larger areas, I use a brush so I can easily buff it out. If you don’t, it can easily appear streaky, like a strip you put above your cheeks. I like applying this with my fingers and using it on the tip of my nose, above my lip, on the corners of my eyes, and under my brows.

Eye Gloss in 004

The Eye Gloss 04 ($25) aims to provide a glowing clarity to the eyes for a radiant and dewy look. With an emulsion base, this promises to provide moisture to the eyelids. This is a fun creamy shimmer shadow that contains visible flecks of glitter. I wouldn’t call it a gloss, however, because blending it out makes it appear like your normal shimmery shadow and applying it directly with the brush tip applicator without blending it out makes it too glossy and will move around the eyes. I would say this can be used as a topper to matte shadows for an added shimmer. For my oily lids, though, this did not last. It’s my least favorite in the kit and I think this would be better used as a highlighter.

Plus, a photo no one asked for. Here’s a photo of me wearing all there.